A method has been proposed for using an instrument or device for closing wounds or surgical incisions in mammalian tissue with fasteners made from flexible and resilient biocompatible material which may be either absorbable or nonabsorbable in body tissue. One such type of device for applying such a fastener to tissue is generally disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,006,747.
The device disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,006,747 generally includes (1) a slotted, hollow, straight, needle adapted to carry a portion of the fastener, (2) a rigid plunger for pushing the fastener along the straight needle and into the tissue, and (3) a mechanism for moving the plunger into the needle and for then withdrawing the plunger from the needle.
Other devices of the type disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,006,747 suitable for use in applying various types of fasteners are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,470,834, 3,103,666, 2,069,878, 3,494,004, 3,399,432, 3,518,729, and U.S. Pat. No. 313,418.
Other devices for applying fasteners in non-surgical situations are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,209,422 and 3,733,657.
Prior to the disclosure in U.S. Pat. No. 4,006,747 of the method for applying a fastener simultaneously through a needle and tissue, procedures for the manual application of sutures or fasteners through tissue with needles or needle-like elements were known. Examples of such sutures and needles are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,636,956, and 3,716,058.
The fastener applying device disclosed in the above-discussed U.S. Pat. No. 4,006,747 has a generally elongate housing with the straight needle projecting from the front end of the housing generally parallel to the longitudinal axis of the housing.
The inventors of the present invention have determined that it would be desirable to provide an improved housing and needle configuration that would permit the surgeon to use a hand movement substantially similar to that used when applying conventional sutures with conventional suture needles. This would be desirable since most surgeons have developed, and have become accustomed to, such hand movement when applying conventional sutures. Therefore, the adoption and use of such an improved fastener applier device by surgeons would be more readily facilitated.
The inventors of the present invention have also determined that it would be desirable to provide an improved housing structure that would enable the surgeon to conveniently maintain the needle on the front portion of the instrument in a desired orientation relative to the rear portion of the instrument.
The inventors of the present invention have also determined that it would be advantageous to provide an improved needle shape and configuration that would be specifically adapted for piercing tissue and that would facilitate the picking up and holding of tissue as the tissue is pierced with the needle.
It would be also beneficial if the improved fastener applier device could be made from relatively inexpensive materials so that the device, after being initially provided to the surgeon in a sterile package, can be disposed of after one use. With such a disposable device, it would be desirable to provide a design that would facilitate fabrication of the device from non-toxic materials that would have little or no deleterious effects on the environment as a result of proper disposal of the device after use.